Letter To Our Family

Update: This letter was written yesterday with the intent of sending it out last night. Larry went back into the hospital with another pancreatic attack earlier this morning. Looks like we will be making some drastic changes sooner rather than later.

Dear Friends & Family:

My purpose in writing this letter is to give you an update on Larry's health, to share our story with those who have heard bits and pieces about what we have been going through and to most importantly ask for your continued loved and support as we make very difficult decisions that not everyone may understand or agree with. Some of you may think we are crazy and we have wondered that ourselves as we have went through these very trying experiences.

About 18 mos. ago our family moved out to a house on 5 acres. We made this move with the vision of having a more healthy, carefree lifestyle. Our kids would have plenty of land to run on, we could raise and grow our own food and we would have good, clean well water. Little did we know that this was just the beginning of a “hellish nightmare” for our family.

Shortly after moving into this home our family started getting very sick. Spencer was rushed to Primary Children's hospital and diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, Larry started having potentially deadly and excruciatingly painful pancreatic attacks and to date has had seven, Enoch developed asthma, had stomach aches and often complained of headaches, Ben, Bekah & Rachel developed chronic coughs and when they were seen by John's Hopkins Hospital was very alarmed by these coughs when we visiting them for their 3 year check-up for A-T. Rachel would cough so hard that she would start throwing up mucous and stop breathing. I finally took her to Primary Children's hospital because we weren't finding any answers. She was diagnosed with chronic rhinosinusitis (which I now know is a common symptom of mold poisoning). During this time I also came down with Bell's Palsy and suffered from severe brain fog and depression. In one year we had 9 hospital visits and 11 drs. visits for illness. This was very unusual for our family.

The one other major trial that was thrown into the mix at the time was the very unexpected news that we were expecting another baby. I was already feeling so overwhelmed because we already had six children, three of whom had been diagnosed with the rare degenerative disease A-T. We also had no maternity insurance and I was told after my last pregnancy that having another baby would be potentially life threatening for me because of my previous 3 c-sections.

After much research, ruling out other causes and some inspiration we tested the house for toxic mold. There were several toxic molds present in the house and we were advised by one of the worlds' top toxicologists to vacate the house. Thanks to divine intervention and many kind family members and friends, we were able to get back into our old house two weeks before our baby was born. In retrospect, this house was the perfect breeding ground for toxic mold growth. It had a leaky roof and had sat empty for two years.

After moving back to our old house a lot of our symptoms disappeared, but Larry has continued to have pancreatic attacks which will eventually lead to diabetes or pancreatic cancer. He went from being such a strong man and in overall excellent health to becoming so weak and unhealthy. He even fainted in my arms at one of our hospital stays and to this day continues to suffer a variety of bizarre symptoms, including the constant fear of another pancreatic attack. Last August he tested positive for having mycotoxins (bi-product of exposure to toxic molds and some of the most toxic substances known to man). His recent test still tested positive for mycotoxins. Some people are very sensitive to these poisons and have to take extreme measure to regain their health.

The events of last Sunday were very alarming to me. Friday and Saturday Larry was not feeling well. He was kind enough to take me out for a Mother's Day dinner even though he was feeling miserable. By Sunday afternoon he was still not feeling well and broke down and ask me what I was going to do if he didn't make it. Even though I have thought about this a million times over the past year, this is the first time he has ever ask me that and we have openly discussed it. I knew that it was time to reexamine the things we needed to do to get him healthy.

A few weeks ago we had the opportunity to go to Santa Barbara, CA and visit with Dr. Janette Hope MD, President of the American Academy of Environmental Medicine and mold survivor. We came home with 6 pages of protocol for his treatment plan. The very first item on this treatment plan is “avoidance of exposure to water-damaged environments and/or moldy environments, including home, work place, school, car and other settings and items that have been exposed to these settings.” We were also given some pharmaceutical treatments that have seemed to be helping, but I am afraid that they are not going to be enough to get him well.

This first request on her treatment plan is so devastating and seems like such an overwhelming task, but I have known for quite some time that this day might be coming. I have often reflected on the lives of our pioneer ancestors who gave up all of their worldly possessions and often not just once. I have often ask myself why I am any different?

At this point in my life, I would give up all of my earthly possessions to get my family well. There are people who have lived in tents to get their health back after being poisoned by this stuff. If that is what is required of me then so be it. We can replace all of our earthly possessions, but we cannot replace our health or a family member. At the end of the day I have to be able to look my children in the eyes and tell them that I did EVERYTHING I could to help their father get well.

I have been through A LOT of trials in my life, but the events of the last year and a half have absolutely broken me. We are faced with devastation on so many levels. We are faced with an illness that is not well known about or accepted in society and the treatments and testing we need are only partly or not at all covered by our insurance. We are also looking at having to give up everything we own, including his ability to work around the grains at the feed store that he has worked so hard to build over the past 7 years. Unfortunately, Larry is not the only one that needs this medical help as there are many of us who still struggle with different ailments very possibly related to toxic mold poisoning. I am not sure how things will work out for us, but I have learned in my life that the Lord always provides a way even if it is at the last minute.

I don't know how we will need to go forward from here, but I am writing to ask for your continued support, love and prayers. If we make choices that do not make sense to you please do not judge us and criticize us because you don't understand what we are having to go through. Toxic mold poisoning is like the “leprosy” of our day and it is often very difficult for people on the outside to understand what people suffering from toxic mold poisoning are being forced to go through. After much research and visiting with people that have been through this, the advice that sticks in my head the most is that “most people do not do what they need to do soon enough” Unfortunately, they either die an untimely death or are forced to live a very secluded life and struggle with chemical sensitivity because they become allergic to everything around them.

I do not know the Lord's full purpose behind this incredible trial that we are going through, but if it serves as a tool to bring us closer to Christ and to each other then it will be worth it. I also hope that we can be pioneers for others around us to bring awareness to the prevention of this horrible sickness and help others who may be suffering from it as others have done for us.

Thank for your continued love and support.

Love,

Jill